Reflections on the Role of Agriculture in Pro-Poor Growth

This paper assesses the importance of agriculture poverty reduction, largely through its impact on overall economic growth, drawing on evidence from Latin America and other developing regions. The econometric evidence strongly suggests that the sector contributes to growth more than its share of GDP...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:World development 2010-10, Vol.38 (10), p.1362-1374
Main Authors: Valdés, Alberto, Foster, William
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agricultural development
Agriculture
Developing countries
Economic development
Economic growth
Economic impact
GDP
Gross Domestic Product
growth
Latin America
linkages
Poverty
Poverty alleviation
Public goods
Rural development
Studies
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Summary:This paper assesses the importance of agriculture poverty reduction, largely through its impact on overall economic growth, drawing on evidence from Latin America and other developing regions. The econometric evidence strongly suggests that the sector contributes to growth more than its share of GDP, certainly in Latin America but also elsewhere. Cross-country studies show that, on average in the developing world, agriculture tends to have an impact on both national growth and poverty reduction that is greater than its simple share of national GDP. The results reinforce the argument against taxing agriculture relative to other sectors and that in assigning government expenditures to public goods one should take into account the historical relationship between agricultural growth and the subsequent non-agricultural growth. The paper also considers approaches to stimulate the rural economy.
ISSN:0305-750X
1873-5991
DOI:10.1016/j.worlddev.2010.06.003